Posted on 03/02/2010 7:29:41 AM PST by smokingfrog
A Roseau (Minn.) County deputy who accidentally shot his wife in the thigh with a hunting rifle faces two misdemeanor charges, according to a news release from Warroad City Attorney Steven Anderson.
Nathan Cossentine, of Roseau, Minn., is charged with transporting an uncased, loaded gun and recklessly handling a gun. Both charges carry a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension found that Cossentine was inside his vehicle in the early morning hours of Nov. 8 handling the gun that accidentally went off, injuring his wife, Michelle, the release states.
The Sheriff’s Department previously said a bullet struck Cossentine’s wife on the top of her thigh, hitting only skin and fatty tissue, as she sat in the passenger seat. Cossentine had the gun across his lap and was checking to see if it was loaded when his pinky or part of his clothing hit the trigger, the department said.
The couple, who had been deer hunting earlier, had just returned home when the gun went off, and just after the shooting happened, Cossentine told the sheriff’s office he was taking his wife to a hospital, the department said.
Michelle Cossentine took the blame for the shooting Monday. “I mean, it was my fault that I told him the gun was unloaded,” she said. “We were just double checking before we brought it into the house because we’ve got little kids.”
(Excerpt) Read more at grandforksherald.com ...
“Moral of story - If someone tells you that a gun is not loaded, you better check for yourself to be sure. It’s still your responsibility if you are the one handling the gun.”
That’s what he was doing. He just did it poorly.
No one was hurt and I guarantee it won’t happen again, too bad every accidental discharge doesn’t end so good.
oh and dont point it at someone even if you think its unloaded.
No such thing.
Man...trust me, it’s not loaded? That’s gotta be up there with...welllll...something oral, I guess...
“a bullet struck Cossentine’s wife on the top of her thigh, hitting only skin and fatty tissue, as she sat in the passenger seat. Cossentine had the gun across his lap”
BS BS BS BULL SH!T
that aint what happened.
how do you end up with a rifle across you lap in an automobile? where did the rifle come from? the back seat? did he reach back, grab the rifle and wigle it into the front seat? If the auto was a pickup and the rifle in a rack, did he reach behind his head and remove the rifle from the rack while seated? next time you are behind the wheel of your car truck suv... try and imagine this scenario actually working. rifle in you lap, doors closed... where is the muzzle? where is the but? and where is the steering wheel?
It may have been an acident, but the story of how is total BS.
my 2 cents.
</sarcasm>
Could have been a crew cab type pickup or something, I guess.
It’s possible they could have been sitting in the driveway with the doors open, and checking the guns before going inside the house.
even if it is the bigest F-350 crew cab...
you don’t reach back and wrestle the rifle into the front seat, you get out, open the rear door and pick up the rifle.
or put another way, after smacking her in the back of the head with the barrel (when he retrieved the rifle from the back seat) she would not have sat next to him and waited to be shot.
that’s just my opinion, thinking visually I can’t makehte story work. I haven’t taken a rifle out to the driveway to test my theory... yet.
“I haven’t taken a rifle out to the driveway to test my theory... yet.”
So, why is your screen name lack-of-trust again? ;^)
I can recall 3 or 4 stories in the last year or so of people having NDs while handling a firearm inside a vehicle. Generally speaking, I’d have to say it’s bad practice to be manipulating a firearm within the confines of a vehicle.
my suspicion is that they were “hunting” from the front seat of the truck...
which was probably a factor with most “accidental” rifle fire inside a vehicle. (although one can never discount stupidity)
The guy had it on his lap and the trigger was caught by either his clothing or his hand. Too simple and dangerous.
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